What would you do in this situation?

I’d have two options. Do my best for them even though I can provide very little. I always see street kids and punks with dogs, usually big dogs, who seem to want to stay with them. If you can’t always afford food for the animal, I’m sure it can do with scraps or whatever it scrounges up…but that would suck, really. Putting your animal through that. Animals are born survivors of course, but unless I own a wolf or a bear, cats and dogs are very dependent on human care, and can can do very badly if their needs are not properly met. Having said that, a lot of this probably depends on the breed, especially when it comes to dogs.
And in my case, it would be cats though. Cats are survivors, but they do really bad when freaked out by traffic. :( I’ve also read that outside cats don’t have as long a life as house cats, even if there are no cars around. It’s not like I could tie them up while I’m panhandling, unless I did have some trailer or shack to keep them in.

If the option of trying to get by with them didn’t work, I’d give them up for adoption, in the hopes that whoever I gave them to, or whatever organization took them, they would be well cared for. I could ask friends if they want to look out for them, which would be my first option, if this question did not suggest that there are no immediate solutions for my homelessness. I’d probably ask anyway.

I wouldn’t want to give up my two cats, but I would want what is best for them, which probably would mean having to give them up. :/ That would probably be the more realistic option, but I would hope someone I know would be willing to look out for them until I fixed myself up.

The question is a tough one.
I for sure would hand them over to a family member or a friend. If I really had to I guess giving them up may have to be an option, because there really is no reason for them to suffer because of my indiscretions. Surviving on the streets with them would not work, both of my dogs have special strict diets because of health issues and if they started eating garbage perhaps I may lose them faster which would defeat the purpose of keeping them with me.

Best scenario I am thinking is to have a back up plan just in case you get in this awful situation. :(

As long as I could care for my dog and give him food, even if I have to go through dumpsters, I would not be able to give him up. It sounds selfish especially if we were homeless but it’s the truth. I would ask a friend or family member to take care of him but then I probably wouldn’t be homeless. My dog is tiny so I could try putting him in my bag and sneak him in if a place I can go to doesn’t allow pets. I’m not sure how well that would work since he barks a lot but I would try.

I know the best thing would be to find a home for my dog that would take care of him. That would be my very last option. As long as I’m feeding my dog, he would be happy to stay with me, even homeless.

I would never let my dogs go even if I was homeless. They are my family and family sticks together during bad times. Do we send our kids to an orphanage when we are homeless? I may not be able to afford extras, but I would definetly provide them food,water and lots of love. If my situation is really worse then I would talk to my friends and family about it and make sure to have a few options on where my pets could be safe and cared for untill I was in a better place to have them. Our pets can sense emotions and they feel pain just like we do. Moreover nowadays there are resources available to help you keep your pets when you hit a hardship.

Easy. I would give them to my sister in law until I could get settled.

Gut them & fashion a lovely pair of slippers, it’s cold out so best to bundle up.

I would try to speak to an animal shelter – maybe they’d agree to feed my dogs in exchange for some unpaid work. That way, they would be cared for, but I could still be with them. Not an ideal solution…but I can’t imagine abandoning a pet of mine. Food, water and vet visits aren’t the only things an animal needs – they want to be with the people they love, just like we do.

I keep my pets as long as I can afford to feed them, and I would feed them before I’d feed myself.

If I were a dog person, I’d have a bigger dog which I would probably keep with me for companionship and security if I were living on the street. However, I only like some dogs and would not keep one as a pet.

With cats, I would ask everyone I know if they could take them in. A friend of mine had to move to a place that doesn’t allow pets, and he found a cat sanctuary that took them in until he was able to get a better home.

I’d do everything in my power to care for them, but, if it got really bad I would probably opt for re-homing or euthanasia. My male cat is extremely mellow and would adapt to a new home, however, just like people, the older an animal is the harder it is to adjust. He is 7–8 now and, quite frankly, I think euthanasia is preferable in many cases vs. the emotional stress of re-homing at an elderly age.
My female siamese is VERY much a one person cat, my cat. She is sweet, but shy, and would not adjust well to a new home.

Sadly, I just had to re-home my 15 yr. old goose ” Marwyn” last spring when I lost my home of 7 years on 5 acres. I raised him form a 10 day old gosling and he was extremely imprinted on me. I was going to opt for euthanasia if I couldn’t find the perfect home, which I DID!
He now lives about 30 miles from me on a 10 acre ranch with wealthy, eccentric, animal nuts like me and I get daily videos and pictures of him and his new life.

I visited him too soon after only a month last spring and he digressed in his adjustment.
I haven’t seen him for over 6 months now and it is breaking my heart, but…we all want what is best for him. He is a ladies gander, but has now, just in the last few months bonded with his new father goose that adores him.
I am hoping I will be able to visit him again, but for now, his ongoing adjustment and continued bonding is most important.
The couple in their 40’s that adopted him and his 2nd wife also have another goose and several ducks, a dog, 3 mini-donkeys and 2 horses and chickens.
He lives in a beautiful barn and wanders the fenced property with his new pals.

Losing him was truly the hardest thing I have ever gone through, worse than my divorce. lol
Not only do I miss him terribly but his loss also signifies the end of an era for me.
22 years on rural mountain properties here in the Sierra foothills and not only did I lose the love of my life, seriously..( next to my daughter ) but, I am having to accept that my decades of country living are over. I will never have another goose, chickens, horses and all the things that have given my life a rich quality.

Still, as bittersweet as it is, I did find the perfect new mother & father goose for my darling guy. :) :(

I have a couple of friends that I would trust to give my pets a good life. I would really struggle without my dogs but if I can’t afford to pay for them to eat (I’m not happy with just giving them scraps) then I can’t give them the life they deserve and it would be selfish of me to keep them if I can’t adequately care for them. If I give them to the friends that I have I mind, I know I could have them back if I got myself in a better position or at least see them at times.

I’d do everything within my power to keep them. I’ve never heard of a homeless shelter that lets people bring animals, so it would be left to me and them against the world.

Assuming that I still had my car, my dog, cat, and I would move into it. When the weather’s cold, I’d wrap Sadie and Martin carefully – thick duvets can be found at any thrift shop – to keep them warm. During hot weather, I’d take them outside by day, in the shade, and crack the car windows at night.

As for food, I’d beg and scrounge to feed them, and they’d eat before I would. When you really love another person or creature, there’s no question that you sacrifice yourself to save him/her.

A few aspects of The Great Society (that was sarcasm) that most people are unaware of:

- There should be temporary shelters for animals. Sending a beloved animal companion to a municipal shelter, where it’ll be euthanized or adopted by someone else, isn’t a solution. Temporary shelter is needed in cases of natural disaster (floods, hurricanes, earthquakes) and personal disaster (someone’s house burned, long-term illness or injury, financial ruin and homelessness).

- There are shelters for either men or women and children. There are few family shelters. I’ve never even heard of a shelter for fathers and their children. When a family becomes homeless, its members are usually separated; husbands can’t stay with their wives and children. When a custodial father loses his home, the children are often taken by CPS and placed in foster care.

- It’s no secret that good daycare is expensive and difficult to find. Few people understand that there’s no such a thing as eveningcare or nightcare. So many low-wage, entry jobs don’t happen between 9:00 am and 5:00 pm. This culture has disdain for single parents who rely on public assistance and tells them to take any menial work. But, such positions – janitors, restaurant jobs, security guards, telemarketers, etc. – are often done at night. If said parents don’t have kind, nearby friends or relatives who are willing to be dependable and babysit for long hours, the parents can’t accept any work outside the white-collar workday.

Pawn them off temporarily with a friend or relative with the intent of taking them back when you can. My pets, when I have them, are family!

For all of you that are finding temporary homes with friends and relatives…..what if that wasn’t an option? I ask this because I know some people say that they would never give up their pets “no matter what”.

@anniereborn – Feed ‘em as best you can along with yourself. NEVER give ‘em up!

@anniereborn I guess it depends on the general health of the animal. I would love to keep them and if I could provide them with what they need to live a decent life then I would but my older dog needs veterinary treatment that I wouldn’t be able to afford if I was homeless. Keeping her in poverty with me may kill her. I live in the UK so could take her to Dogs Trust who claim not to euthanise dogs if they are well enough to be rehomed. If I could afford to feed my younger dog who, at the moment, is healthy enough to survive poverty, I would keep her for as long as possible. I am not going to put my selfish needs above their welfare though.

@kritiper “NEVER give ‘em up!”

Amen, my friend. Never give up on someone you love.

All the people saying you would never give them up, what if keeping them meant their quality of life seriously deteriorated by poverty? If you can’t afford vets bills or any special dietary needs etc would you make them go without so you could keep them or do you have a back up plan for situations like? Not judging, just curious.

Also…..what would you do with them any time you had to go somewhere that wouldn’t allow pets?

I’d ask on fb or shelters, rescues or churches. Pets keep us sane so try to keep them.